Thursday, November 04, 2004

Tainan - Um passeio histórico e místico

Hoje o Taipei Times publicou uma merecida reportagem 'a minha terrinha (dos ultimos 2 anos), Tainan - a velha capital da Formosa.

photo by Gavin Phipps - Taipei Times

The former capital city of the country has plenty of historical monuments to take a look and some good food to savor

A walking tour of a major metropolis might not seem to be the most convenient, enjoyable or safest way to sightsee while touring Taiwan. But life moves slowly in Tainan and exploring the historic city on foot is fun, especially for those with a whim for history or ancient and colorful Chinese architecture.

The nation's first official capital from between 1663 and 1885, Tainan is one of the few places in the country where history has been spared the wrecking ball and much of its long and colorful past can still be seen today. Walking is the most convenient way of seeing the 200 temples and countless Ming Dynasty (1368 to 1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1911) structures that help make up Taiwan's history.

Read more here.

Tuesday, November 02, 2004

Pequim ataca Bush

A China quebra o voto de silencio relativamente aos candidatos 'as eleicoes norte-americanas, expressando pontos de vista comuns a uma grande parte da populacao mundial.
Oxala' que o povo Americano tambem tenham comprendido a dimensao do problema!


China criticized US President George W. Bush's war on Iraq yesterday, accusing an "arrogant" US of trying to "rule the world" and blaming the US-led invasion for sparking an increase in terrorist attacks.

In a rare commentary by former vice-premier and former longtime foreign minister Qian Qichen (錢其琛), China broke its practice of not commenting on US presidential candidates and chastised Bush for his foreign policies.

"The philosophy of the `Bush Doctrine' is in essence force," Qian said in the government-run English-language China Daily.

"It advocates the United States should rule over the whole world with overwhelming force -- military force in particular," he said.

While supporting Bush's anti-terrorism efforts, China opposed the war in Iraq and sees the US administration's policies as an example of superpower hegemonism, which Beijing frequently rails against.

"The current US predicament in Iraq serves as another example that when a country's superiority psychology inflates beyond its real capability, a lot of trouble can be caused," Qian said.

"But the troubles and disasters the United States has met do not stem from threats by others, but from its own cocksureness and arrogance," he said.

Far from winning peace for itself and the Arab world, Washington has "opened a Pandora's box," intensifying ethnic and religious conflicts, he argued.

"The Iraq war was an optional war, not a necessary one, and the pre-emptive principle should be removed from the dictionary of the US national security, former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright also said," Qian wrote.

Mounting hostile sentiments in the Muslim world toward the US have already helped al-Qaeda recruit more followers and suicide martyrs, Qian said.

"The Iraq War has also destroyed the hard-won global anti-terror coalition," he said. "Instead of dropping, the number of terrorist activities throughout the world is now on the increase."

by AFP, BEIJING
published in Taipei Times

Monday, November 01, 2004

Tough Mondays


Even eating a meal with chopsticks can be an exhausting task on a Monday morning!